Process of utilizing indian-corn straw.



.. UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

mime DQRNEB, or BUDAPEST, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY.

PROCESS OF UTILIZING INDIAN-CORN STRAW.

No Drawing.

Specification of Letters I 'atent.

, ject of the King of Hungary, residing at 6 Szentkiralyiutcza, Budapest, in the Empire of Austria-Hungary,*have invented a certain newand useful Improve-d Process of Utilizing Indian-Corn Straw, of which the following is a specification.

Indian corn-stalkz'. 6. Indian corn-straw (with the blades) possesses a certain degree of nutrition but investigations have shown that this degree of nutrition is so slight that Indian corn-straw alone cannot be used as fodder even when the animals do not work and it is only a case of maintaining their weight, for when the animals are fed'with it, they begin to lose flesh. This is due to the composition of Indian corn-straw. The 'large'percentage of cellulose contained in Indian corn-straw amounts to 30-35%, it reduces the value of the fodder because the cellulose can be digested by animals which chew the cud. the work of digestion however i being greater than the nutritive value of the cellulose. The remaining constituent parts of Indian corn-stalk (Indian cornstraw) are the pentosanes and also the incrustating substances, which are neither pentosanes nor cellulose.

According to the present process, the cellulose, which is unsuitable for fodder, is separated from the Indian corn-straw in such a manner that a valuable fodder can be obtained and the cellulose can be employed for the manufacture of paper. In order to attain this double aim, the Indian corn-' straw must undergo special treatment which is usually not carried out in the manufacture v g concentrated limewater, or a weak alkaline solution, for example, a dlluted soda solutat-ing substances arenot solublein water or only to a very small extent (Ii-7%). The

solvents usually employed, e. the mineral acids, are unsuitable, because they convert the cellulose into'oxycellulose, which however isnot suitable for the manufacture of paper because it easily turns Into dust.

PatentedSept. 17,1912. Application filed April 11, 1911.. Serial No. 620,479.

Weaker acids must be employed, but this alone is also not suflicient, because the material betweehthe cell-walls does not form a real solution with the solvent but only-a suspended colloid; with respect thereto, the mass of cellulose fibers however acts as'a filter, which does not allow, the valuable foodstuifs to pass therethrough. Thc.stalks must be, prepared mechanically in such a manner that'for the purpose of extraction of the intercellular materials, the, fibers are afforded a very large area through disintegration. For this purpose, the chopped material is soaked in Water and reduced to fibers in refiners. The Water used for. soaking is separated and subsequently employed for dissolving.

The valuable food'stulf is extracted from the material'reduced to fibers by charging the fine flaky chopped straw into a boiler and boiling several hours with a weak acid, for example, with acetic acid, considerably diluted (0.2-0.4%) under moderate pressure (up to 3.8 atmospheres") several boilers, are employed one behind the other so that the liquid used in the one boiler passes into' the next boiler, thus Working on the countercurrent principle Thus 17-18% of the stalk can be extracted. After boiling with acetic acid, the liquid is discharged, the boiler is filled with concentrated lime-water and the pressure in the boiler is again increased. After a short time, the lime-water is neutralized. As the liquid must be slightly basic, sufficient concentrated milk of lime is charged into the boiler to obtain tion (about 0.2%) or a sodium-hydroxid solution (about 0.1%) is prepared iii-the boiler by charging the concentrated lye-solution in small portions into the boiler and mixing with the contents of the boiler by stirring. The concentration is continued so long as the lye takes up appreciablequantitles of the material of the Indiancornstalk. The termination of the yield is indicated by a retardat-ionof the neutralization of the lye.

After the solution is discharged, a substance is left in the boiler, whose percentage of cellulose is comparatively increased,

[while its volume has gone back to about of the original'volume. The extracted material suitable for a foodstufi amounts to 30-35% of the Indian corn-stalk (with respect to a dry-substance) The two extracted solutions are separately concentrated. The acetic acid vapors, which are exhausted during the concentration of the solution produoed by means of acetic acid, are over lime-powder in order to reobtain the acetic acid. The two substances concentrated to the thickness of syrup are now com? bined and absorbed by fine-cut Indian cornstalks. The syrup-like foodstufi containing about 20% moisture thus assumes a soli form and can be deposited in bags. The

material is suitable for a foodstufl owin to its touch, appearance, smell and. chemical composition.

A material is left in the boiler, which is suitable for producing cellulose"; The

materials, which are worthless-. for the maximfacture of paper, have been mostly ex tracted, hence comparatively few chemicals are required for producing the cellulose.

lose, thus'necessitating an expensive bleach-- mg process. These costs are also decreased according to the present invention -i.- e. the quantity of chlorid of lime to be'used is' less. Since the volume of the material would be reduced considerably (to about the dimensions of, the dissolving boilers may be vless, less water is heated and a saving of fuel is effected.

Before filling the cellulose dissolving boilers with the material containing cellulose after the extraction, the material must be freed from a constituent of the'parenchymcellulose which is unsuitable for further manufacture. This is chiefly the marrow oi the Indian corn-stalk and whenreducin to coarse fibers, it is crushed to a'gritike material, whereby it is quite unsuitable for the manufacture of paper. cellulose is removed in sucha manner that the chopped straw or chafi' removed: from .the foodstufi dissolving boiler. is" placed with water on a moving sieve, throughthe meshes of which the dustl'ike amorphous parassed from In ously, ro'ducln asubstancesuitable for the The parenchymenchym-cellulose with the water pass, while the cellulose suitable for further manufacture is moved away on the sieve. The water containing the parenchym-cellulose is placed on a sieve and separated from the parenchym-cellulose, which may be collected.

The hereindescribed process is suitable for ripe Indian-cormstraw. I I

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I clai'm and wish to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A process for extracting foodstuffs from Indian corn-straw and for simultaneously roducin a substance suitable for the 'manu acture 0 paper, consisting in reducing the Indian corn-straw to a fiber, subjecting the same under pressure to the action of a strongly diluted organic acid, discharging the liquid, treating the straw under pressure with a strongly diluted alkaline liquid for completing the extraction, discharging the solution obtained and finally concentrating and mixing thissolution and the solution first obtained to the thickness of syrup, as and for the purpose specified 2. A process for extracting, ioo dstufi'sf from Indian corn-straw and for simultaneously roducin asubstanoe suitable for the manu acture 0 paper, consisting in reducing the Indian corn-straw to a fiber, subjecting the same under moderate pressure to the action -of, a strongly diluted (0.2- 0.4%) acetic acid solution, discharging the liquid,- treating the strawnnder; pressure with a strongly diluted soda. solution and finally mixing this solution and the solution first obtained as and for the purpose speci fied. I 3. A (process for extracting foodstuffs ian corn-straw and for simultanemanu acture oi paper, consisting in reducing the Indian corn-straw to a fiber, subjecting the same under moderate pressure. to a strongly diluted (02-04%) acetic acid solution, discharging the liquid. treati'n thev straw under pressure "with a stronglydi uted sodium-hydroxid solution, and finally mixing this solution with the solution first obtained as and for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

BELA DORNER.

Witnesses BEIN GRoWnwALD, J r.,

. HUGH KENING. 

